1. Preheat oven to 350°F
2. Cover beet roots with foil and bake at 375°F for 1 – 1 1/2 hours or until soft
3. Purée the beets and mix with the oil until incorporated with an electric mixer
4. Add sugar and vanilla extract
5. In a bowl, mix together the flour, cocoa powder, salt and baking powder
6. Alternately, add the flour mixture and the milk to the beet mixture
7. Use cupcake liners and fill each tin 3/4 full
8. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes for regular size cupcakes until a cake tester or toothpick comes out clean when poked in the middle
9. To make the cream cheese frosting, whip together the vegan margarine and vegan cream cheese with an electric mixer
10. Add the confectioner’s sugar 1 cup at a time until it reaches desired consistency
11. Frost after cupcakes are fully cooled or chilled.

Memorial Day: A time to remember those who have given their lives for our freedom, a time to enjoy the company of friends and family, and share in conversations over delicious food. Here are a few of our favorite recipes from our very own Delray Market Cookbook, Tastes of the Season.

Vegetarian Friendly Options/Side Dishes

Party Potatoes by Marjorie Riddle

12 servings

1 tsp onion salt

8 oz cream cheese (softened)

1 tsp chives

¼ tsp. paprika

1 ½ cups of grated cheddar cheese

1 tbs butter

1 cup sour cream

Prepare mashed potatoes as usual and drain. Blend in salt, cream, cheese, chives and sour cream. Spoon the mixture into a large casserole dish. Top with cheese, paprika, and dot with butter. Bake in 350 degree oven for 1 hour.

Tall Slaw by Vince Wooten

2 cups white cabbage, shredded

2 cups red cabbage, shredded

1 cup red onion, sliced super thin

1 cup green onions, chopped

½ cup olive oil mayonnaise

½ cup whole grain mustard

½ cup parsley

1 tsp. salt

¼ tsp. ground pepper

¼ tsp. cayenne pepper

2 tsp. sugar

Place the white cabbage, red cabbage, red onions, green onions and parsley in a large salad bowl. In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise, mustard, salt, pepper, cayenne pepper and sugar. Mix well. Add the dressing to the cabbage and toss until well blended. Cover and refrigerate for at least an hour.

Watermelon Salad by Chef Lou

1 seedless watermelon

1 red onion, dices

1 bunch fresh mint, lightly chopped

6 oz of crumbled blue cheese

2 tbs Heirloom Balsamic Vinegar (or more to taste)

Cut the flesh of the watermelon into bite sized pieces and place in large fruit salad bowl. Finely dice the red onion and lightly chop the mint leaves. Toss all of the above and add crumbled blue cheese and drizzle with the balsamic vinegar. Great summer time recipe!

Now for the entrée/carnivores…

Texas BBQ Beef Brisket by Bubba Smith

2 ½ – 3 pound of beef brisket

2 tbs olive oil

Cayenne pepper

Marinade

3 cups of ready made spicy BBQ sauce

1 cup of beer

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tbsp. of Worcestershire sauce

3 onions, chopped

5 garlic cloves, crushed

3 tbsp. brown sugar

2 tbsp. ground cumin

½ tbsp. ground ginger

In a large bowl, combine the BBQ sauce, beer, lemon juices, Worcestershire sauce, onions, garlic, brown sugar, cumin and ginger. Turn the brisket in the marinade, cover and leave to marinate in the refrigerator, burning occasionally for 1-2 days. Remove the beef from the marinade, reserving the marinade and pat dry with paper towels. Heat the oil in a flameproof casserole, add the brisket and brown Pour the marinade over, cover and cook in a pre-heated 325 degree oven for 2.5-3 hours until tender, adding a little water if the sauce becomes thick.

Remove the casserole from the oven and leave to stand for 15-20 minutes. Remove the meat and slice. Season the sauce with cayenne pepper to taste then heat through. Arrange the meat on a serving platter, and pour over the sauce.

And for Dessert…

Marilyn’s Peach Cobbler by Marilyn Pospy

6-8 peaches, peeled and sliced

6-8 slices of bread cubed and crust off

1 cup sugar

1 stick of butter, melted

2 tbs self-rising flour

1 egg

Put peaches in the bottom of an 8×10 inch Pyrex dish, top with bread cubes. Mix together, sugar, butter, flour and egg and pour on top of bread. Bake in 350-degree oven for 45 minutes.

Mom always said, “The early bird gets the worm.” Guess this can apply when shopping for a Mother’s Day gift, too. This weekend is the Market’s second to last for the Spring 2014 season (May 10 is the last one until the Fall), so it’s high time to get thinking of what to get mom! Here are a few ideas to impress your mom on Sunday, May 11, all while benefitting local businesses.

Fresh Flowers: You can never go wrong with these! Stop by Amazing Creations or The Orchid Doctor for the most beautiful, fresh arrangements around.

Body Care: Pamper mom with a gift from Serenity Flow Soaps. They carry a varied selection of scents from lavender to sweet vanilla, and products from soaps to whipped shea butter. And stop by Tespen’s Body Care for a variety of products as well.

A Furry Friend: Each weekend Tri-County Humane Society and Dezzy’s Second Chance Rescue bring adoptable dogs looking for “fur-ever” homes. Make sure you clear this one with mom first J

A Home-Cooked Meal: At the Market you can find ingredients to whip up breakfast in bed or a gourmet dinner for mom. The possibilities are endless. There are fresh pastas from Pasta Amore, seafood from Independent Seafood and Finn-A-Atic Fish Co., spices from around the globe from The Spice Booth, Anita’s Guacamole and salsa if you are feeling some Mexican inspired dish and not to mention all the fresh fruits and veggies for a complete delicious and nutritious meal for mom. And for the carnivore, Farris Farm has grass-fed beef and poultry and Arrowhead Beef Co. is another option too!

Dessert: Mom have a sweet tooth? The variety of desserts is endless. From brownies, to French pastries, muffins, breads and more. Life is short, eat dessert first!

Florida is known for its fresh seafood and array of marine life right off the Treasure Coast. Eric and Lisa Finn of Finn-Atic Fish Co. are passionate about their love of fresh seafood. And, with a last name like Finn, you know they are definitely experts! We caught up with them recently for our bi-weekly blog:

Q: What is your favorite restaurant in downtown Delray Beach?

A: We really enjoy 32 East or Max’s Harvest. Love the local flair in a lot of their dishes.

Q: If you were trapped on a desert island what three items would you want to have?

A: My wife, a spear gun and a mask. We wouldn’t run out of fresh seafood, that’s for sure!

Q: When you aren’t at the Delray GreenMarket, where would we mostly likely find you?

A: The Atlantic Ocean, catching the freshest fish possible off the coast.

Q: What is one place you hope to travel to someday?

A: Australia – g’day mate!

Q: What is your favorite seafood you sell?

A: It would have to be hogfish or cobia. Hogfish are often referred to as the filet mignon of fish. This delicate, white fish has virtually no “fishy” taste and is often a favorite. What makes hogfish special is that it is primarily caught by spear, not hook and line like most fish are harvested. Hogfish is great blackened on a skillet with your favorite seasoning, or with no seasoning at all. Cobia meat is white and mild like grouper, but it is cut into thicker steak-like pieces that are comparable to swordfish. Cobia steaks are often cooked grilled, or blackened.

Here is one of our favorite recipes, grilled cobia and lobster!

Ingredients:

1 lb. cobia fillets

2 lobster tails

Chef Pappy’s Cajun seasoning (for cobia)

Chef Pappy’s Garlic Butter seasoning (for lobster)

2 large sweet potatoes

2 large zucchinis

Season salt

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees, and the grill to medium-high heat.

2. Cut the sweet potatoes into fries, lightly toss in olive oil, and sprinkle with season salt. Place into the oven.

Hats off to all our participants in the 17th Annual Chili Cook-Off! It was a great morning with competition, music, heart-warming food and more. We took a few minutes to get to know our 2014 People’s Choice and Chef’s Choice winner, Joe Farrell, with his “Oh Deer” chili entry.

Q: What is your award-winning recipe?

A: I made a tomato-based chili with venison and pork. I begin with a base of tomato sauce and paste. I buy a mix of dried peppers, toast them and grind them, and mix with Cumin, Coriander, ground oregano, black pepper and cayenne pepper and mix into chili powder. This is the background flavor.

Upfront we have the two meats, along with onions, garlic, chopped tomatoes, red and orange sweet, long hot, Serrano, and jalapeño peppers (all fresh from the GreenMarket, of course!)These are sautéed and then added to the sauce. Kidney, pinto, and great northern beans are added for bulk. I thinned it out with water, stock and beer. And simmered it for twenty-four hours.

Q: What was your inspiration behind this dish?

A: Competition. There is always really tough competition each year. I knew I had to pull out all the stops to make the best. My Mom always said, “You can taste the love in slow cooked foods,” and I couldn’t agree more.

Q: When you’re not in the kitchen making chili, where would we most likely find you?

A: Playing golf, fishing or poker, or taking our two beautiful dogs to the beach.

Q: What is your favorite thing about Delray?

A: The best thing about Delray is the way they cater to people to have a good time. The Ave. provides the venue and events like the GreenMarket and the giant tree with Santa, bring the people back to the restaurants and businesses downtown. You have so much fun you can’t wait for the next event and party to roll around. I’ve brought my nieces and nephews from Atlanta to the last couple of First Nights and everyone had a blast (even my cranky mother-in-law…shhh)!

Q: Share with us a little known fact about yourself.

A: My wife Jackie and I have raised five puppies for Canine Companions for Independence. It has been an amazing journey for such a worthwhile organization. If you are interested, you should check out CCI.org!

And a BIG shout out to all our other award-winning participants. Until next year’s heated competition.

In honor of Delray GreenMarket’s 17th Annual Chili Cook-off, we thought it would be fun to find out how this delicious concoction of beans, meats, spices, cheese and veggies came to be.

According to the International Chili Society (yes, that actually does exist), the origin of chili seems to have its own bowl full of spicy and controversial beginnings; and who serves up the best bowl in history may forever be an unanswered question and area of debate.

It is said that chili began “…somewhere west of Laramie, Wyoming in the early nineteenth century – being a product of a Texas trail drive – to a grisly tale of enraged Aztecs, who cut up invading Spanish conquistadors, seasoned chunks of them with a passel of chile peppers, and ate them. The mixture of meat, beans, peppers, and herbs was known to the Incas, Aztecs, and Mayan Indians long before Columbus and the conquistadores.”(Source: International Chili Society)

YIKES! Thank goodness for the Industrial Revolution.

So the age-old question of where it all began may be up to debate. But, there are a few things we do know:

Fact: Chile peppers were used in Cervantes’s Spain and show up in great ancient cuisines of China, India, Indonesia, Italy, the Caribbean, France, and the Arab states. (Source: International Chili Society)

Fact: Don Juan de Onate entered what is now New Mexico in 1598 and brought with him the green Chile pepper. It has grown there for the nearly four hundred years since. (Source: International Chili Society)

Fact: Canary Islanders, transplanted in San Antonio as early as 1723, used local peppers, wild onions, garlic, and other spices to concoct pungent meat dishes – improvising upon ones they had cooked for generations in their native land, where the Chile pepper also grew. (Source: International Chili Society)

We also know that in 1998, Chris Brown, the former CRA director, started the Delray GreenMarket’s Annual Chili Cook-Off, and Lori Nolan the GreenMarket’s current GM, has carried on the tradition ever-since.

“The chili cook-off has always been a popular event for both professional and home chefs to really showcase their chili creativity,” said Nolan. “Everyone enjoyes the camaraderie between the chili lovers and chili creators. It’s always a spicy good time!”

The 17th Annual Chilli Cook-off is this Saturday, February 22 from 10-12pm at the Old School Square Park. Entry is FREE and samplings from the competitors will be given out. So come dance along to Heidi and the El Cats, while sampling unique and scrumptious chili dishes, voting on your favorite and do some shopping with all the varied vendors at the Market.